2018 Free Agency / Armchair GM Thread

[Zaman314125]

Originally Posted by Underdog

@Rkonkle_mffl: Mavs should max Capela right as Free agency opens next week. Everyone will be waiting for Lebron to make his move, and you can use that to put Houston in a crunch. All while still being able to get DJ if you miss, because of the hold Bron put on the market. Also, the deal could be so painful for Houston to match, they opt for the cheaper DeAndre Jordan themselves, and Capela is ours.

I was thinking about that. What if we did max him out at 12:01 AM and the Rockets would be on the clock after Capela signs the max sheet. Like Erica said, I'd do this just to screw the Rockets

[sefant77]

Originally Posted by Underdog

@Rkonkle_mffl: Mavs should max Capela right as Free agency opens next week. Everyone will be waiting for Lebron to make his move, and you can use that to put Houston in a crunch. All while still being able to get DJ if you miss, because of the hold Bron put on the market. Also, the deal could be so painful for Houston to match, they opt for the cheaper DeAndre Jordan themselves, and Capela is ours.

Yeah no...Lebron wont take a week to decide where he goes. Specially when they are strong rumors that its allready down to Lakers and Cavs.

We have our entire cap stuck for a week and even if Lebrons signs with a team after one or two days, Morey is going to wait the entire week to match. Just so he can piss back at Cubans leg.

I dont want to be part of a pissing contest between Cuban and Morey. Lebron wont take a week to decide and he wont go to Houston. Means Capela isnt going anywhere...

Even the whole decision crap was over at July 8th. It wont take longer this time. And he wont go there anyway.

[sefant77]

Originally Posted by Zaman314125

I was thinking about that. What if we did max him out at 12:01 AM and the Rockets would be on the clock after Capela signs the max sheet. Like Erica said, I'd do this just to screw the Rockets

Its not that we just have to offer max at 12:01, the clock just starts after a player actually signs the offer sheet

[SMC0007]

Otto porter type would be fine. We need a good sized wing who has handles and can shoot. Doesnt matter if it's a 2 or 3. If Dfs improved his shot he would be great.

Main goal is to get the best fit center we can. That would buy a little time to figure out how to work the pieces we have and what we need going forward.

[saclare]

Originally Posted by tap2390

Another few names to watch out for --

Derrick Favors (UFA). He's only 27 and I believe he can thrive with a little more space playing the 5 instead of the 4 next to Gobert.

Kevon Looney (UFA). While he obviously had the benefit of playing on the Warriors, he showed some good defensive versatility. I'm not convinced he's better than Finney-Smith if I'm being honest though.

Montrezi Harrell (RFA). Really came into his own for the Clippers towards the end of the season. Is undersized, but plays extremely hard and can guard the perimeter.

Favors is a solid option. Harrell just reminds me of Motley and what he could possibly do given the opportunity.

[sefant77]

Originally Posted by tap2390

This is a fair stance if you can point to a player we will lose out on pursuing Capela who would make a significant difference on the team. IMO if we strike out on Capela we can always make a play for Derrick Favors, DeAndre Jordan, etc. Those guys are all on the same tier b spectrum more or less.

always make a play? No, we cant if Morey lets us hang an entire week before he matches (and he will drag it out) and during that week pretty much every other solid FA signs somewhere else.

Remember the crap with Jordan? Exactly this happened. During that couple of days where we thought we signed him and him breaking his word pretty much every other solid other FA signed somewhere else. And when we "got" then our cap back, the FA market was a desert and he fucked an entire FA period or the Mavs.

And thats why i dont want to hear his name here anymore. I prefer to lose games without this douche than win games with having is ugly face in Mavs jersey. Remember the Emoji day on Twitter and Griffins chair picture? They all were at his house playing cards, having fun because Jordan allready promised to re-sign with the Clippers. Probably laughing hard about all the twitter stuff and stupid Cuban and stupid Mavs etc.

And yet this little child didnt have the guts to inform the Mavs for another what, 48 hours?

Fuck him forever. If he signs here i wont watch any game during the time of his contract.

[Dtownsfinest]

Originally Posted by tap2390

This is a fair stance if you can point to a player we will lose out on pursuing Capela who would make a significant difference on the team. IMO if we strike out on Capela we can always make a play for Derrick Favors, DeAndre Jordan, etc. Those guys are all on the same tier b spectrum more or less.

I'm in the camp of wanting Boogie. I'm not missing out on him to get the Rockets back.

[sefant77]

Regarding the center position, you got overall talent, fit (ideal: great rim protecter and roll-big) and pricetag.

Pre-Injury Cousins would have been a nobrainer, even with a not ideal fit. Post-injury Cousins is a questionmark, still good enough to make up for a not ideal fit? I think so. Rick and his multiple ball handlers with DSJ, Doncic and Cousins. Cousins averaged around 5 APG the past two seasons.

Capela and Jordan are obvious good fits but wont happen (RFA status and Jordans history)

Nurkic? I think the pricetag is too high for a not ideal fit (Blazers told they would match anyway any other)

Favors? I like him. Not an ideal fit, but great character, "just" 26 etc.

Len? Not an ideal fit but probably with a nice cheap pricetag

I think we go Cousins, i dont see us playing the RFA game with Capela or Nurkic when Cousins, Favors and Len are UFAs.

I think the Mavs have 1a Cousins and 1b Favors. Maybe even going for a combo of Favors and Len.

[EricaLubarsky]

I’m fairly certain we’ll go Cousins so I’m going to give him a chance

[sefant77]

Ah and they wont sign Dwight. He is the center version of Carmelo and the entire league knows it now.

Monroe and Kanter killing the entire defense. Dedmon opted in with the Hawks.

I think Cousins, Favors and Len is the short list...

[SMC0007]

Originally Posted by saclare

Favors is a solid option. Harrell just reminds me of Motley and what he could possibly do given the opportunity.

Idk... I'm meh on Favors.

I think Motley has more offensive game, especially post game than Harrell but Harrell is slightly quicker and more athletic. I'm all for unleashing Motley to see what hes got.

[mac222b]

Give me Len or Favors, depending on terms and our ability to keep flexibility. Too bad Dedmon opted in, would’ve made a nice stopgap and he added the 3 to his game. Just say no to Boogie

[SMC0007]

How much better is Len going to be than Motley?

Also Favors seems a bit sluggish. I'm ok with whoever as long as A. We dont over pay for an unproven or B. We still give Mot a look.

[sefant77]

Originally Posted by SMC0007

Idk... I'm meh on Favors.

Maybe....this helps? Okay, grabbing all those offensiv boards over fatass Carmella isnt a huuge deal, but still

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WgiwPPrbbNQ

[Dtownsfinest]

Originally Posted by SMC0007

How much better is Len going to be than Motley?

Also Favors seems a bit sluggish. I'm ok with whoever as long as A. We dont over pay for an unproven or B. We still give Mot a look.

Len is a interesting situation. He would play well and the Suns wouldn't give him any playing time. He's outplay Chandler and still wouldn't get burn. I'm convinced he can play in this league if given minutes. I also think based on his past draft status and what he did do in limited minutes? Someone is going to give him big money.

[SMC0007]

Id rather roll with this guy tbh.

https://youtu.be/-uzNM1sOA5o

Motley goes a bit ham on Len.
https://youtu.be/cQ8STBy0Ii0

[DevinHarriswillstart]

Originally Posted by SMC0007

Id rather roll with this guy tbh.

https://youtu.be/-uzNM1sOA5o

Motley goes a bit ham on Len.
https://youtu.be/cQ8STBy0Ii0

Motley isn't a rim protector. Mavs need defense and rebounding.

[Me.B]

Originally Posted by sefant77

Ah and they wont sign Dwight. He is the center version of Carmelo and the entire league knows it now.

Monroe and Kanter killing the entire defense. Dedmon opted in with the Hawks.

I think Cousins, Favors and Len is the short list...

I think we still have to factor in the chance they trade for a guy like Gortat. He’d obviously be a stop gap center since he’s on an expiring contract. No great by any means but serviceable for 1 year.

[sefant77]

Gortat confirmed allready that the Wiz are going to trade him and him and Dirk are kind of close.

Could be a shortterm backup plan

In other news:

Cousins, an unrestricted free agent this year, will beat the odds if he becomes the same dominant-yet-flawed player he was prior to the injury. But Dallas’s history working with Cousins’s agent, Jarinn Akana, is undeniable. Of Akana’s 12 NBA clients, five are current or former Mavericks, and one played for their G League team: Boogie’s brother, Jaleel Cousins.

But Cousins also said he wants his 30m max...

[EricaLubarsky]

Originally Posted by DevinHarriswillstart

Motley isn't a rim protector. Mavs need defense and rebounding.

Rim protection is overrated

Motley is a great rebounder

[Mavs#1Fan]

Originally Posted by EricaLubarsky

Last night had zero impact on cap

Not quite. We have our draft picks "hold" on the salary cap. Plus the #3 pick has a higher hold than the #5

It's small but there was a cap hit to the trade

[tap2390]

Originally Posted by Mavs#1Fan

Not quite. We have our draft picks "hold" on the salary cap. Plus the #3 pick has a higher hold than the #5

It's small but there was a cap hit to the trade

Dude, 105 posts in almost two decades and Luka Doncic made you come out of hiding!

[EricaLubarsky]

Originally Posted by Mavs#1Fan

Not quite. We have our draft picks "hold" on the salary cap. Plus the #3 pick has a higher hold than the #5

It's small but there was a cap hit to the trade

Yeah, second rounders will get minimum if they’re on the team which is as much as cap holds so they won’t impact anything, but we lost 863k in cap space by getting the third instead of the fifth pick. It’s not nothing but I’m certainly glad we got Docic over Bamba or Trey.

Seems like a dumb thing to be happy about but I remember a year where we sacrificed Draft position just to save a few hundred K in cap space— that we never used.

[Zaman314125]

If the Mavs, people who were literally embarrassed and shocked by DeAndre Jordan's stabbing is willing to forgive him, then why not us? They realize that Jordan is probably the most realistic possibility if they want to compete at somewhat on a high level. Cousins is coming off of a major injury and he's got emotional issues, Dwight Howard is a cancer, Clint Capella is restricted, and the rest of the free agent pool barely moves the needle. I'm not hoping this happens, but if it does I'm not going to stop watching my Mavs. If anything we should applaud our front office for being good people and putting the team and winning ahead of everything.

[rimrocker]

Originally Posted by Zaman314125

If the Mavs, people who were literally embarrassed and shocked by DeAndre Jordan's stabbing is willing to forgive him, then why not us? They realize that Jordan is probably the most realistic possibility if they want to compete at somewhat on a high level. Cousins is coming off of a major injury and he's got emotional issues, Dwight Howard is a cancer, Clint Capella is restricted, and the rest of the free agent pool barely moves the needle. I'm not hoping this happens, but if it does I'm not going to stop watching my Mavs. If anything we should applaud our front office for being good people and putting the team and winning ahead of everything.

Completely agree!

If we were building around him there might be some concern but he would be a role player that would immediately address two major weaknesses on this team.

[Underdog]

Originally Posted by Zaman314125

If the Mavs, people who were literally embarrassed and shocked by DeAndre Jordan's stabbing is willing to forgive him, then why not us? They realize that Jordan is probably the most realistic possibility if they want to compete at somewhat on a high level. Cousins is coming off of a major injury and he's got emotional issues, Dwight Howard is a cancer, Clint Capella is restricted, and the rest of the free agent pool barely moves the needle. I'm not hoping this happens, but if it does I'm not going to stop watching my Mavs. If anything we should applaud our front office for being good people and putting the team and winning ahead of everything.

I agree with all of this.

Cousins and Dwight come with so much risk that they could possibly derail our rebuild, Capela and Nurkic are going to be difficult to acquire and could cause us to miss out on other FAs if their teams match, and guys like Favors Len, Gortat, etc. don't improve us enough to be seen as anything but backup plans.

DeAndra, on the other hand, gives us everything we need out of the center position right now -- defense, rebounding, and a bit of scoring. Plus the dude is always healthy, which helps mitigate the risk that comes with centers over 30... Really, if Cuban and Dirk can forgive him, then I can too. He's a perfect balance of fit and obtainability.

[Bryan_Wilson]

The bigger problem with DJ is idk if he will opt out. He might opt in and then how do we get him? He will be an expiring and a good player. That's a great asset for the Clips if thats the case, no way we can flip what little we have asset wise for that.

[Underdog]

Originally Posted by Bryan_Wilson

The bigger problem with DJ is idk if he will opt out. He might opt in and then how do we get him? He will be an expiring and a good player. That's a great asset for the Clips if thats the case, no way we can flip what little we have asset wise for that.

This is a fair point... Although he is still a max player, so I could see him trying to secure a longterm contract while his value is still high. He's a center who's about to turn 30 and injuries happen, this could be his last best chance to cash in at top dollar.

[SMC0007]

Originally Posted by EricaLubarsky

Rim protection is overrated

Motley is a great rebounder

This. We have had rim protection before and it came with a severe lack of any offensive production. Mot can shoot and rebound really well, as well as provide iso offense at least.

[DevinHarriswillstart]

Originally Posted by EricaLubarsky

Rim protection is overrated

Motley is a great rebounder

Uh, it definitely matters when the rest of your starting lineup is a relative defensive black hole. No idea if Wes is starting or not, but Smith, Doncic, and Barnes isn't good.

[Twenty4sevenn]

I really like Favors. When Gobert was injured for 11 games and Favors started at the 5, he averaged 16.5 points, 9.3 rebounds, 2.5 assists and 1.5 blocks while shooting 61% from the field.

If it's between maxing Boogie or Favors on a reasonable deal, I take Favors every time.

[EricaLubarsky]

Originally Posted by DevinHarriswillstart

Uh, it definitely matters when the rest of your starting lineup is a relative defensive black hole. No idea if Wes is starting or not, but Smith, Doncic, and Barnes isn't good.

Uh, yeah, we gotta compete with the rim protection of Draymond Green and Kevin Love

Is defense important? Absolutely. Should we be married to the idea that we still need a Mutombo type despite centers becoming less important? Probably not. Fewer attempts inside means fewer shots to contest and fewer rebounds to pull down in the paint. The NBA has changed. More exterior shots and more switches mean defensive versatility on the perimeter is way more important than a defensive anchor.

Add to that that we’re shooting to be a .400 or .500 team next year and I really don’t see the urgency. We’re not beating the Warriors or LeBron+4s. I mean, we need more than Motley, but we don’t need Mutombo to be competitive next year.

[DevinHarriswillstart]

Originally Posted by EricaLubarsky

Uh, yeah, we gotta compete with the rim protection of Draymond Green and Kevin Love

Is defense important? Absolutely. Should we be married to the idea that we still need a Mutombo type despite centers becoming less important? Probably not. Fewer attempts inside means fewer shots to contest and fewer rebounds to pull down in the paint.

Add to that that we’re shooting to be a .400 or .500 team next year and I really don’t see the urgency. We’re not beating the Warriors or LeBron+4s.

You're saying we don't need to rim protection because Green and Love aren't rim protectors and then say we're not really competing with them anyway. Hmm...

I'm not worried about what GS and Cleveland are doing. I care about the Mavs filling big holes on defense. When Smith and Doncic get blown by, then we absolutely need that second line of defense. Rim protection isn't just about blocking shots. It's having a big in there who can alter shots and make guards think twice. I absolutely think that is still an essential thing to have if you can get it and a large reason the Jazz won so many games last season.

[EricaLubarsky]

Originally Posted by DevinHarriswillstart

You're saying we don't need to rim protection because Green and Love aren't rim protectors and then say we're not really competing with them anyway. Hmm...

I'm not worried about what GS and Cleveland are doing. I care about the Mavs filling big holes on defense. When Smith and Doncic get blown by, then we absolutely need that second line of defense. Rim protection isn't just about blocking shots. It's having a big in there who can alter shots and make guards think twice. I absolutely think that is still an essential thing to have if you can get it and a large reason the Jazz won so many games last season.

You don’t seem to get my point if you think it’s about competing WITH Cleveland or the Warriors.

You get a center that can move. They need to switch. The more guys they can switch onto the better. Second, you get guys that can pull down both close and long rebounds. Both those skills are more important in today’s NBA than camping in the paint waiting to block shots while teams shoot threes— unless you can bring significant offense. Maybe Ayton will suddenly change that but the number of close shots is way down. The number of low post moves is almost extinct.

[SMC0007]

Originally Posted by DevinHarriswillstart

You're saying we don't need to rim protection because Green and Love aren't rim protectors and then say we're not really competing with them anyway. Hmm...

I'm not worried about what GS and Cleveland are doing. I care about the Mavs filling big holes on defense. When Smith and Doncic get blown by, then we absolutely need that second line of defense. Rim protection isn't just about blocking shots. It's having a big in there who can alter shots and make guards think twice. I absolutely think that is still an essential thing to have if you can get it and a large reason the Jazz won so many games last season.

Ok, so even if we aren't ahead of ourselves in assuming Smith and Doncic are going to be constantly getting blown by. What happens next is your rim protector comes over leaving his man for the dump off and that rim protector can't be in two places at once. It doesn't really matter where the ball goes if we are getting blown by constantly. A rim protector is mostly good for the attempts to finish up close, which isn't always the case with penetration. Solid team defense is going to trump rim protection, good rebounding even trumps it. I'm not disagreeing with the idea that we need some rim protection and defense, but rim protection imo is the smaller portion of the pie.

[DevinHarriswillstart]

Originally Posted by SMC0007

Ok, so even if we aren't ahead of ourselves in assuming Smith and Doncic are going to be constantly getting blown by. What happens next is your rim protector comes over leaving his man for the dump off and that rim protector can't be in two places at once. It doesn't really matter where the ball goes if we are getting blown by constantly. A rim protector is mostly good for the attempts to finish up close, which isn't always the case with penetration. Solid team defense is going to trump rim protection, good rebounding even trumps it. I'm not disagreeing with the idea that we need some rim protection and defense, but rim protection imo is the smaller portion of the pie.

OK well right now team defense and rebounding is nil. It's not something Rick is just going to be able to "coach" out of them because it sure as hell hasn't happened the last two seasons.

If you get an elite defensive 2 guard (possibly Smart), and as good of a defensive center as you can, then you're talking about team balance. IF our starting lineup is

DSJ
Matthews
Barnes
Doncic
Motley

Then we've not fixed two of the biggest issues the team has been literally suffering at.

[SMC0007]

Originally Posted by DevinHarriswillstart

OK well right now team defense and rebounding is nil. It's not something Rick is just going to be able to "coach" out of them because it sure as hell hasn't happened the last two seasons.

If you get an elite defensive 2 guard (possibly Smart), and as good of a defensive center as you can, then you're talking about team balance. IF our starting lineup is

DSJ
Matthews
Barnes
Doncic
Motley

Then we've not fixed two of the biggest issues the team has been literally suffering at.

That probably wouldn't be our heavy minute lineup. Fwiw, Motley is a huge upgrade over anything we rolled out last year at center in rebounding. I don't get why we would Draft Doncic and then play Wes at the 2 and Barnes at the 4. That goes against the idea of why we drafted him. I would be fairly disgusted if that was what Rick does. Wes is good as gone, unless he wants to play for peanuts off the bench after this season here. Obviously we will upgrade our 5, but I would run Powell along side the new center. Dirk and Wes off the bench.

[BigDog63]

Originally Posted by Bryan_Wilson

I used to like Ibaka. But that guy looks so done. He looked soooooooo bad in the playoffs.

Ibaka was a really good player...five years ago.

I do like the Doncic pick, although will have to see how that 6 PG lineup works out. BUT, I do wonder if the Mavs won't regret not picking Mo Bamba. Their strategy here is based on picking up a major player in Free Agency. How has that worked out previously? I do think this is a different Mavs team, with a good young core...which is more enticing to a key FA.

[tap2390]

Originally Posted by BigDog63

Ibaka was a really good player...five years ago.

I do like the Doncic pick, although will have to see how that 6 PG lineup works out. BUT, I do wonder if the Mavs won't regret not picking Mo Bamba. Their strategy here is based on picking up a major player in Free Agency. How has that worked out previously? I do think this is a different Mavs team, with a good young core...which is more enticing to a key FA.

If the Mavs didn’t take their BPA based on free agency conjecture I would be disappointed. The fact that’s the Mavs has Doncic as their number 1 gives me faith that they deliberately moved for a player they feel is a game changer.

[sefant77]

Originally Posted by BigDog63

Ibaka was a really good player...five years ago.

I do like the Doncic pick, although will have to see how that 6 PG lineup works out. BUT, I do wonder if the Mavs won't regret not picking Mo Bamba. Their strategy here is based on picking up a major player in Free Agency. How has that worked out previously? I do think this is a different Mavs team, with a good young core...which is more enticing to a key FA.

Again, you have to consider the crazy summer of 2016. The cap spike pretty much ruined the cap situation for ~80-90% of the teams until 2020...

2018 and 2019 just a handful of teams have max cap or near to max cap. And most of them are rebuilding teams like Hawks, Kings or Suns..

Also our plan powder wasnt really working because our assets were 34+ old Dirk and Rick. Now with DSJ, Doncic, Barnes and Rick and the winning culture created by Dirk it looks completly different for player looking to join a new team. As example for Butler next summer.

DSJ/Doncic/Barnes/Rick AND being one of the few teams with cap 2018 AND 2019 is a big deal...